April 29, 2023
By Zahara Chowdhury
Staff Writer
Full-time artist/artist-educator David ‘BS’ Bradshaw from Brooklyn, New York led a workshop on April 20 in the media center that introduced students to an array of freestyle techniques.
During two 75-minute workshops, BS guided 28 students in improvisational exercises which included making noises and gestures, speaking in gibberish, beatboxing and freestyle rhyming.
The workshop, which was open to all students who participated in LHS’ spring poetry slam on April 6, was organized by Supervisor of Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment and Technology Ms. Klein, who was inspired to learn how to freestyle after watching the improvisational hip-hop comedy musical “Freestyle Love Supreme” on Broadway. After learning from BS during a set of virtual classes she attended, Klein invited him to LHS.
BS said in his late teens, he was a closeted writer who kept his poetry in a notebook. He said he barely opened the drawer where he hid his notebook, as it represented difficulty and challenge. Finally, at the age of 19, BS joined a group of artists in New York at an event called Freestyle Mondays.
“It took a lot of practice to evolve from there, but I did it so I could battle because I was an angry youth, and the battle is a consensual space to just pop off on somebody,” BS said.
After meeting beatboxer Grey Matter through the freestyle scene, BS said he realized he could have lighthearted fun while freestyling.
“I met this whole community of people where I realized that you could also play games,” BS said. “You can build and share. Not that battling isn’t building and sharing; it’s just very pointy and prickly by design versus [us] trading bars.”
BS said the pandemic caused him to halt all in-person activities, including workshops and performances, but he continued growing his business Freestyle Fitness, teaching adult small-group classes virtually.
“It started as a monthly thing, like a three- to four-hour thing, and I realized I could do it online, which turned into four-week groups that would meet once a week for 90 minutes,” BS said. “There was a lot of stress initially [from] building something from scratch, [but I] was able to really grow a lot in the pandemic and create this little community of very, very eclectic and beautiful people.”
“I wanna make people smile and remind people that… you should be yourself. Art is the you-est you that you can you. Be you.”
While this was not his first time leading a workshop at a high school, it was BS’ first at LHS.
He said youth work is inspiring because future generations are changemakers, and he wants them to be empowered to keep creating.
“I wanna make people smile and remind people that… you should be yourself. Art is the you-est you that you can you. Be you,” BS said.
Sophomore Chelsea Cardo said the exercises during the workshop removed the pressure of creating a perfect result.
“I initially felt nervous because I felt the need to perform a perfect rap with perfect rhymes, [but] being able to speak in gibberish allowed me to just have fun,” Cardo said.
She said the workshop allowed her to experiment with a new type of poetry.
“I am used to preplanning what I write and editing my poems over time. During the workshop, we had to freestyle rap on the spot, so improvising pushed me out of my normal comfort zone,” Cardo said.
Sophomore Rayan Yamout said the workshop helped him gain a new outlook on poetry and its different forms.
“I found a great interest in delivering poetry with the assistance of a beat to emphasize the tone of each line,” Yamout said.
He said BS was a great facilitator.
“[BS’] energy and passion was extremely high,” Yamout said. “His engagement with my group was consistent, given his dedication to making the workshop a comfortable place for everyone’s enjoyment and expression.”
